In this paper, a new extraction method based on countercurrent liquid-liquid microextraction (CLLME) has been developed for the extraction and preconcentration of inorganic arsenic (iAs) in plasma and urine samples prior to their analysis by electrothermal atomic absorption spectrometry (ETAAS). In this method, firstly, 5 ml of water is added to the extraction vessel. Then 30.0 μl of the extracting solvent is added to it in order for the extracting solvent to be placed in the narrow-necked vessel. In total, 10 ml of a standard solution or a pretreated real sample is added to the sample container and it is connected to the extraction vessel via a connector...

Exposure to inorganic arsenic (iAs) during pregnancy is associated with adverse health outcomes present both at birth and later in life. A mechanism may include epigenetic and genomic alteration in fetal genes involved in immune functioning. To investigate the role of the maternal immune response to in utero iAs exposure, we conducted an analysis of immune-related genes in pregnant women from the New Hampshire Birth Cohort Study. A set of 31 genes were identified with altered expression in association with levels of urinary total arsenic, urinary iAs, urinary monomethylated arsenic and urinary dimethylated arsenic...

OBJECTIVES: To establish the prevalence of external (EAS) and internal anal sphincter (IAS) defects 15-24 years after childbirth in association to mode of delivery and faecal incontinence (FI), and compare the proportion of obstetric anal sphincter injuries (OASIS) reported at delivery with defects on ultrasound. METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study including 563 women, who delivered their first child from 1990-97. Women responded to a validated questionnaire (PFDI) in 2013-14...

BACKGROUND: Inside attendants (IAs) [are] exposed to high pressure during hyperbaric oxygen (HBO₂) therapy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the alterations of pulmonary functions in IAs over time. METHODS: IAs in our hyperbaric center constituted the IA group (n=11). A sex- and age-matched control group (n=15) was constituted from hospital staff who had not dived or been exposed to hyperbaric environments before. We measured the respiratory function of all subjects at two time points: 1) at the start of the study; and 2) 12 months after the first measurement...

BACKGROUND: Active smoking is a major risk factor for intracranial aneurysm (IA) rupture (IAR); however, little is known about the effects of passive smoking on IAR. In China, female passive smoking is widespread and severe. This study aimed to assess whether passive smoking is associated with increased risk of IAR among nonsmoking women. METHODS: We enrolled and retrospectively analyzed 385 consecutive female patients with IAs (87 ruptured, 298 unruptured) who were admitted to our center between June 2015 and January 2017...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the role of ultrasonographic indices (Color Fraction and Resistive Index) in assessing the effect of intra-articular steroid (IAS) injection on synovial inflammation in knee joints of Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis (JIA) patients and to determine the correlation between these ultrasonographic indices and clinical and laboratory parameters in JIA patients after IAS. METHODS: Twenty seven patients of JIA and equal number of age and sex matched healthy controls were enrolled...

Seaweed can accumulate inorganic arsenic (iAs) from seawater as hydrogen arsenate (HAsO4(2-)) in place of the phosphate anion (HPO4(2-)). While it is rapidly metabolised to organoarsenic species, predominantly arsenosugars and arsenolipids, iAs may be present in seaweed biomass and this poses a potential health concern for consumers of seaweed products. Here, the distribution of total (AsTOT) and iAs was determined in thallus parts of the kelp Laminaria digitata and the intertidal fucoid Ascophyllum nodosum (both Phaeophyceae) using inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) and high performance liquid chromatography - ICP-MS (HPLC-ICP-MS)...

BACKGROUND: Interatrial septum (IAS) pacing seems to be a promising strategy for the prevention of atrial fibrillation (AF); however, studies have yielded conflicting results. This meta-analysis was to compare IAS with right atrial appendage (RAA) pacing on the prevention of postpacing AF occurrence. METHODS: Pubmed, MEDLINE, EMBASE and Web of Science databases were searched through October 2016 for randomized controlled trials comparing IAS with RAA pacing on the prevention of AF...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Although the mechanisms that contribute to intracranial aneurysm (IA) formation and rupture are not totally elucidated, inflammation and matrix remodeling are incriminated. Because tPA (tissue-type plasminogen activator) controls both inflammatory and matrix remodeling processes, we hypothesized that tPA could be involved in the pathophysiology of IA. METHODS: Immunofluorescence analyses of tPA and its main substrate within the aneurysmal wall of murine and human samples were performed...

BACKGROUND: Previous studies of patients with social anxiety have demonstrated abnormal early processing of facial stimuli in social contexts. In other words, patients with social anxiety disorder (SAD) tend to exhibit enhanced early facial processing when compared to healthy controls. Few studies have examined the temporal electrophysiological event-related potential (ERP)-indexed profiles when an individual with SAD compares faces to objects in SAD. Systematic comparisons of ERPs to facial/object stimuli before and after therapy are also lacking...

OBJECTIVE: To determine the recurrence risk of ictal asystole (IA) and its determining factors in people with epilepsy. METHODS: We performed a systematic review of published cases with IA in 3 databases and additionally searched our local database for patients with multiple seizures simultaneously recorded with ECG and EEG and at least one IA. IA recurrence risk was estimated by including all seizures without knowledge of the chronological order. Various clinical features were assessed by an individual patient data meta-analysis...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Previous studies firmly proved that an irregular aneurysmal shape was strongly associated with intracranial aneurysm (IA) rupture, but it is unclear how irregularly shaped intracranial aneurysms (IAs) form. We aimed to identify the factors related to irregular shape of IAs. METHOD: We retrospectively analyzed of consecutive patients evaluated or treated for IA at our institution from June 2015 to July 2016. According to the imaging morphology of aneurysm, the enrolled patients are divided into irregular and regular group...

INTRODUCTION: The risk of perinatal HIV infection can be dramatically reduced through maternal antiretroviral therapy (ART) and infant antiretroviral (ARV) postnatal prophylaxis. The 2013 WHO guidelines recommended four to six weeks of nevirapine or zidovudine as post-natal prophylaxis, with possible extension to 12 weeks for high-risk breastfed infants. A systematic review was undertaken to determine if there is evidence for the WHO to recommend enhanced or extended prophylaxis for high-risk infants...

BACKGROUND: Exposure to inorganic arsenic (iAs) is a major threat to the human health worldwide. The consumption of arsenic in drinking water and other food products is associated with the risk of development of type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). The available experimental evidence indicates that epigenetic alterations may play an important role in the development of diseases that are linked with exposure to environmental toxicants. iAs seems to be associated with the epigenetic modifications such as alterations in DNA methylation, histone modifications, and micro RNA (miRNA) abundance...

Preferred walking speed (PWS) reflects the integrated performance of the relevant physiological sub-systems, including energy expenditure. It remains unclear whether the PWS during over-ground walking is chosen to optimize one's balance control because studies on the effects of speed on the body's balance control have been limited. The current study aimed to bridge the gap by quantifying the effects of the walking speed on the body's center of mass (COM) motion relative to the center of pressure (COP) in terms of the changes and directness of the COM-COP inclination angle (IA) and its rate of change (RCIA)...

Introduction Emerging adults are particularly vulnerable to body image dissatisfaction and social anxiety. These bring about a host of negative outcomes, including compromised social adjustment and well-being. Fear of negative evaluation has been shown to be a core element of social anxiety, but it is rarely considered in studies of body image and its effects on social anxiety. This study aimed to bridge this gap by examining the role of fear of negative evaluation in the association between body image dissatisfaction and social anxiety...

Long noncoding ribonucleic acids (RNAs) are important regulators of gene expression. Antisense noncoding RNA in the INK4 locus (ANRIL), which was coded on the Chr9p21.3 loci, participates in the pathogenesis of tumor, coronary artery disease, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and other diseases. A genome-wide association study indicated ANRIL to be a candidate gene that may lead to the development of an intracranial aneurysm (IA) formation. However, the detailed molecular mechanisms are unknown and have not been studied...

BACKGROUND: The current standard for pelvic intraoperative neuromonitoring (pIONM) is based on intermittent direct nerve stimulation. This study investigated the potential use of transcutaneous sacral nerve stimulation for non-invasive verification of pelvic autonomic nerves. METHODS: A consecutive series of six pigs underwent low anterior rectal resection. For transcutaneous sacral nerve stimulation, an array of ten electrodes (cathodes) was placed over the sacral foramina (S2 to S4)...